The Infatuation (Josh and Kat #1 , The Club #5) by Lauren Rowe Read Free Book Online

whole thing about me getting my rocks
off. I’m so freaking predictable—and so freaking ashamed of myself,
I feel physically ill.
    But wait a minute. It takes two to tango. Derek was
the one who was supposed to be a professional , right? How
the hell did he plan to protect me while pounding me? My life was
quite possibly at stake and he was macking down on me! Oh my
God. Is my life at stake now? I feel like I’m gonna barf. I
throw my hands over my face. This whole situation is crashing into
me like a ton of bricks.
    My phone buzzes in my purse with a text and I pull
it out. Josh Faraday. I wipe my eyes. I feel oddly comforted
seeing his name on my screen.
    “Are you at the hospital?” Josh writes.
    “Yeah, I’m in Sarah’s room now,” I reply. “The doc
says Sarah lost a ton of blood and she’s definitely in a lot of
pain, but she’s gonna be okay, thank God. She’ll probably go home
tomorrow. She got really lucky. The blade didn’t hit anything
critical.”
    “SO AWESOME. Huge relief. OMG. Is my brother there?
He hasn’t answered any of my texts or calls. I’m worried.”
    I look across the room at Jonas again. His face is
twitching in his sleep like he’s having a nightmare. Just as I’m
about to look away from him, his entire body jolts like someone
just leaped out from behind a bush and yelled “Boo!” Aw, poor guy.
He’s actually kind of breaking my heart right now.
    “Yeah, he’s here,” I write. “He’s asleep.”
    “When he wakes up, could you tell him I couldn’t get
to Seattle tonight? All flights are grounded due to weather.”
    As if on cue, thunder crashes outside the hospital
window. “Yeah, if he wakes up while I’m still here, I’ll be sure to
tell him,” I write.
    “Thanks.”
    There’s a long beat. Is that the end of our
text-conversation? I drop my phone in my lap and stare at Sarah for
another long moment, listening to the driving rain outside the
window, my thoughts drifting to the thousands of times Sarah’s been
the best friend a girl could ever hope for.
    I’ve just decided something. I’m done being Classic
Kat. From this day forward, I’m New Kat—a responsible and
levelheaded girl. A girl like Sarah. Smart. Careful . A
look-before-leaping kind of girl, especially when it comes to men.
New Kat takes things slow. New Kat has her head on straight. New
Kat doesn’t just jump into the sack or throw her heart away
willy-nilly. New Kat isn’t tempestuous and crazy. Nope. She’s just
like Sarah. Well, pre-Jonas Sarah, that is. I don’t know what the
heck’s happened to Sarah since she met Jonas—nowadays, she’s acting
like me. But that’s beside the point.
    My phone buzzes with another text. “How are you
holding up, Party Girl?” Josh asks.
    I take a deep breath and tap out an honest answer to
the question, tears streaming down my cheeks. “Not good. The Party
Girl doesn’t feel at all like partying right now.”
    “I know what you mean. The Playboy doesn’t feel at
all like playing right now, either.” He adds a sad face to the end
of his message.
    Well, as long as I’m being honest, I might as well
go all in. “I’ve never cried so many tears in all my life, Josh,” I
write. And, of course, the act of writing that message makes me cry
even harder. “This is the worst day of my life.”
    I’ve no sooner pressed send on that message than my
phone buzzes with an incoming call from Josh.
    I bolt out of my chair and into the hallway to
answer. “Hi,” I say softly into my phone, my cheeks suddenly hot. I
don’t like crying in front of men, even over the telephone. It
always ignites their superhero instincts—and I’m not a girl who
needs to be saved.
    “When I get there,” Josh says softly, his voice low
and masculine, “you can cry on my shoulder all you like, Party
Girl.”
    There’s a long pause. I’m having a physical reaction
to that statement, not to mention the masculine tone of his
voice.
    “Thanks,” I finally say. “I’d